Low compression and motor ticking/scratching sound

Tiny
KADAIR2
  • MEMBER
  • 2007 GMC SIERRA
  • 5.3L
  • V8
  • 4WD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 126,000 MILES
Pickup history: I purchased at 115,000 miles. Car fax report shows service from first owner up to 80,000 miles. Nothing “reported” from second owner. No issues at purchase. I was aware of some issues the 5.3 had with AFM So I immediately put a Range brand AFM disabler on to try and avoid any issues. It has burned about 2 quarts of oil in the last 4000 miles.
Pickup started making a ticking noise about 400 miles back when I was traveling but no engine light or other issues occurred. The ticking is consistent with the rpm.

I did some research and discovered a common problem the 2007.5-2008 series had with lifters and also the bolts on the VLOM not being fastened correctly. I thought this was the problem but now I’m unsure as the noise changed from a tick to a scratching sound. Attached is a video with audio so you can also hear the sound.

I am able to reach the front 2 bolts on the VLOM and they were not even finger tight. After that I ran a compression test, the results were not good:
Drivers side front to back:
50-60-90-75psi
Passenger side front to back:
65-40-125-65psi
I changed the oil last night and found shiny metal chips and shavings in the motor oil; some were stuck to the magnet, some in the bottom of the oil pan.

The fact that it is burning that much oil makes me think it’s a head gasket. The fact that there are shavings in the oil and it is making a scratching/ticking sound makes me think there may be a piston ring malfunctioning or a cam issue.
The compression test makes me think the motor has 500,000 miles on it and is completely shot. I do not know what to test next without pulling the motor and taking it apart. I have access to shop and help from a diesel mechanic but we are both perplexed.

What do you think could be the problem? What is the next step to diagnose the problem? Wanting to know how much work/cost it would be to repair before getting it tore apart.
Thursday, November 7th, 2019 AT 6:09 AM

2 Replies

Tiny
ASEMASTER6371
  • MECHANIC
  • 52,797 POSTS
Good afternoon,

The noise is no good. That is internal. It could be a piston but needs to be torn down to verify.

The oil usage is normal. One quart every 800 miles is acceptable by GM standards.

The compression indicates valve or ring damage.

The bottom line is you need a motor.

Roy
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Thursday, November 7th, 2019 AT 12:27 PM
Tiny
SCGRANTURISMO
  • MECHANIC
  • 4,897 POSTS
Hello,

Unfortunately, from the compression test and the metal shavings in your vehicle's engine oil and the fact that it is burning two quarts of oil a week, I would recommend either an entire engine rebuild or replacing the engine. On a compression test the low cylinder should be within at a bar minimum 70% of the high cylinder. So your vehicle's engine's pistons compression and oil rings have failed on 6 out of 8 cylinders, and the metal shavings are probably from the camshaft bearings which are failing from oil starvation. Please get back to us with what you want to do. We have instructions for either engine rebuilding or replacement if you would like.

Thanks,
Alex
2CarPros
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Thursday, November 7th, 2019 AT 12:41 PM

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